Sprint Announces First In A Series Of Premium Music Offerings With Harman Kardon Onyx Studio Wireless Speaker System

Nearly half of mobile phone owners listen to music services on their device.1 Recognizing this trend, Sprint will break into the premium audio scene and offer customers extraordinary acoustics with Bluetooth connectivity for easy setup, with the exclusive U.S. availability of the Harman Kardon Onyx Studio wireless speaker system.

"With a sleek, compact design and unparalleled and powerful acoustics, the Harman Kardon Onyx Studio is the ideal solution for today's mobile customers who want to elevate their digital music playback to a premium, yet portable, audio experience."

As the first in a series of initiatives coming this year from Sprint to bring premium audio to mobile devices, Harman Kardon Onyx Studio will be available beginning on Tuesday, Feb. 25, for $399.99 (excluding taxes) exclusively in Sprint stores, Web Sales (www.sprint.com) and Telesales (1-800-SPRINT1).

Sprint will become a one-stop shopping experience for music lovers, providing an array of devices, music apps and audio speakers like the Harman Kardon Onyx Studio, to give customers a premium sound experience.

"For many customers the smartphone is their primary music experience, so offering all the devices that surround that experience is important," said David Owens, vice president of Product, Sprint. "Sprint plans to extend its offerings in premium music devices, apps and accessories such as speakers and headphones, and we are excited to collaborate with Harman Kardon to offer Onyx Studio exclusively in the U.S."

Sprint has a long history as an innovator in music services and accessories for the mobile space. It was the first U.S. wireless carrier to launch a mobile phone with a built-in MP3 player, offer streaming radio on mobile phones, and stream full-length concerts live on mobile phones.

Harman Kardon Onyx Studio is the ultimate sound companion for any Bluetooth-enabled device and is the perfect companion for the backyard BBQ or late-night dance party. It provides room-enriching sound through its four powered speakers and dual passive radiators, which deliver deep bass for authentic sound quality. Harman Kardon Onyx Studio offers a sophisticated design and iconic styling, camouflaging its wealth of wireless technologies with an elegant matte finish and chrome feet.

"We are pleased to offer Sprint and their customers the Harman Kardon Onyx Studio speaker that seamlessly blends audio excellence with Bluetooth wireless convenience," said Michael Mauser, president of Harman Lifestyle. "With a sleek, compact design and unparalleled and powerful acoustics, the Harman Kardon Onyx Studio is the ideal solution for today's mobile customers who want to elevate their digital music playback to a premium, yet portable, audio experience."

At just 11 inches in diameter, Harman Kardon Onyx Studio delivers uncompromising audio excellence through four channels of amplification, providing a total of 60W RMS of power through four matched speakers. Dual aluminum passive radiators and Digital Signal Processing enhance the sound, blending clear highs with warm mid-ranges and rich low frequencies. The built-in rechargeable battery provides five hours playing time.

Sprint offers a broad portfolio of music services that customers can take advantage of while using Harman Kardon Onyx Studio. The Sprint Zone application is a convenient, one-stop destination for customers to discover and purchase - or download for free - a wide selection of music applications including Spotify, Slacker Radio, iHeartRadio, Shazam, Sprint Music Plus and Rumpus. Customers can also conveniently pay for Spotify and Slacker Radio directly on their Sprint bill.

The number of streaming music users has doubled in the last two years, while the number of paying subscribers has surged 166 percent in the same time, according to research by Parks Associates. Thanks to Sprint Spark, available in select markets, Sprint customers are able to take advantage of these high-bandwidth services. With the Sprint Unlimited Guarantee, customers on select plans can enjoy the ease of listening to music via their smartphone without having to worry about overages.

With the unlimited data option on the Sprint Framily Plan, Sprint customers can enjoy the music without the worry of going over their data allotment. Available to new and existing customers, Sprint Framily Plan is a new revolutionary pricing program that lets consumers decide who they consider family. The more people added to the group, up to 10 total, the greater the savings for everyone on the plan. Build a group of at least seven people and everyone gets unlimited talk, text and 1GB of data for $25 per month per line (pricing excludes taxes and surcharges).

For only $20 per month per line, Sprint Framily Plan members can buy up to unlimited data, and they are eligible to get a new phone every year. Unlimited features are available while on the Sprint network. Because each account can be billed separately, customers can choose who is in their group. Plan members can share the savings without the hassle of sharing a bill.